Crude oil prices rallied as much as 6 percent on April 3, with both West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent futures soaring above $80 per barrel.
Oil prices climbed in response to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, OPEC+, slashing output by 1.16 million barrels per day (bpd) from May to the end of 2023. Saudi Arabia will lead the way with a cut of 500,000 bpd, followed by Iraq (211,000), the United Arab Emirates (144,000), Kuwait (128,000), Kazakhstan (78,000), and Algeria (48,000).
The cartel’s decision is in addition to Russia’s voluntary cut of 500,000 bpd announced in February.
“Accordingly, this will bring the total additional voluntary production adjustments by the above-mentioned countries to 1.66 million b/d,” OPEC said in a statement. “The Meeting noted that this is a precautionary measure aimed at supporting the stability of the oil market.”…